Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s national security minister, entered the compound of the holy site of Muslims, the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, on Tuesday.
The unprecedented provocation has been condemned by the US, Palestine, and several Arab countries, including those who have signed peace treaties with Israel.
Ben-Gvir clearly crossed the red line that the Palestinian group that governs the besieged Gaza strip warned Israel not to. “Our government will not surrender to the threats of Hamas,” stated Ben-Gvir.
Ben-Gvir has long called for greater Jewish access to the holy site, which is viewed by Palestinians as provocative. He further took to Twitter stating that, “The site is open to all and if Hamas thinks that it can threaten and deter me, they should understand that times have changed”.
Many far-right Israelis have been calling for a Jewish temple to be built there in place of the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The Palestinian foreign ministry stated that it strongly condemns the storming of Al-Aqsa mosque by the extremist minister Ben-Gvir. He views it as an unprecedented provocation and a dangerous escalation of the conflict.